Pile cleaner and protector.



A; L. REYNOLDS.

FILE CLEANER AND PROTECTOR APPLICATION FILED SEPT.8, 1915. RENEWED APR. 26, 1916.

1 266,05 1. Patented May 14, 1918.

UNITED srarns rmrnirr orrron.

ALVA LEMAN REYNOLDS, or LONG BEACH, camronnrmnssrenor. To coMMoN SENSE FILE PROTECTOR COMPANY, or none BEACH, CALIFORNIA, A conronArIoN OF CALIFORNIA.

FILE CLEANER- AND PROTECTOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 14, 1918.

Application filed September 8, 1915, Serial No. 49,645. Renewed April 26, 1916. Serial No. 94,069.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALVA L. REYNOLDS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Long Beach, in the'county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Pile Cleaner and Protector, of which the following is a specification. I

This invention is an improvement upon my wooden pile protector patented to me August 27, 1912, by Letters-Patent Number 1,086,907, and my pile protector described and claimed in my application for Letters- Patent of the United States, Serial No. 15,989, filed Mch. 20, 1915. In each of said protectors a ring or collar loosely encircling the pile is operated by float means to prevent sea life from permanently attaching itself to the pile and for removing sea life from the pile.

Objects of this invention are to provide a pile protector of this type which will be of greater simplicity and more effective action than the pile protectors shown in said patent and application and that will be more fully capable of maintaining its efficiency by its own operation.

A special feature of the improvement I have made in this present invention consists in constructing the pile-encircling ring or collar'out of bent sections loosely connected together; there preferably being two semicircular or bowed sections connected to each other at their ends by two loose joints; and the floats are connected to said sections at the joints; all of the parts being preferably loosely connected together, so that the bowed sections can droop down to contact with the sides of the pile while the floats are upholding said sections.

Furthermore, the floats are made of rectangular cross section in the preferred form in order thatv they will more surely turn around under wave action to present diflen upon the forms of pile protector set forth in my said patent and said application, itis regarded as pioneer in that the two bent sections operate upon the pile in the nature of jaws that, so long as there are accumulations of shell life on the outside of the pile, will work the; protector down the pile, drawing the floats with it as the wave action operates upon them; and this begins the cleaning of the pile at the lower terminal of the excrescences on the pile; and consequently, the floats hammer the shell life approximately at this lower depth breaking up the accumulations, while at the same time there is a constant upward pressure and action of the ring section to scrape the pile, so that eventually the buoyant action of the floats Will bring the ring back to the surface of the water, thus'eleaning the pile.

This action in which the ring operates while the floats are submerged only'occurs of course in cases where the protector is applied to a pile already covered with shell life, for :when the protector is applied to a clean smooth pile the ring moves freely up and down thereon without submerging the floats.

The sections are preferably made of strong wire of suiflcient thickness depending upon the size of the pile and floats and said wire may be of anydesired cross section, round, square or of other angular shape. Round wire is deemed preferable, and will be shown in the drawings.

The accompanying drawings illustrate-the invention in the form that I at present deem most desirable.

Figure 1 is an elevation of a pile-cleaner and protector. constructed in accordance with this invention and shown in position at the bottom of a foul pile for the purpose of cleaning the same.

Fig. 2 is a fragmental perspective view of the same on a larger scale after the cleaning of the pile has been effected.

Fig.8 is a plan of the protector flattened out about a pile shown in horizontal crossseetion out of the Water. The protector in this view is not permanently fixed together and is shown in the condition in which it leaves the place of manufacture.

Fig. l is a vertical sectional view of the float showing its attachment to the link.

The pile protector shown inthe drawings comprises a jointed ring or collar adapted, to loosely encircle the pile, and floats to operate the ring on the pile by wave action. Said jointed ring is formed of a plurality of sections 1, 2 constructed of pieces of wire of equallength jointed together. The ends of said wire sections are looped being bent outward and backward to form outwardlyextending eyes 3 that are linked together by loose connecting means A which are preferably small closed rings. The parts 1, 2, 3, 4 thus form an endless chain to loosely encircle the pile.

To these rings, links having stems 5 are connected by eyes 6 formed by loops on said stems and said links or stems extend loosely through rectangular floats 7 having bores 8 of somewhat larger diameter than the tems to form retainers 9. The ends of the stems are bent over at the tops of said floats after the manner of the links shown in my said application for patent.

In practice the parts shown in Fig. 1 are assembled with the exception that one of the loops on the end of the ring section is left open as shown at a in Fig. 3 to be caught in its link after the sectional ring has been brought to encircle the pile. When this is effected said open loop is closed and the device is left loose to be wave operated on the pile to perform its own work.

The pressure upon the floats tends to lift, to oscillate and to rotate or revolve the protector and the same varies with the wave movements; and as a consequence when there are eXcrescences upon the pile such as are formed thereon by accumulations of mollusks and other sea life the ring sections open out and slip down over the excrescences as the uplift of the float decreases, and the surface irregularities on the pile prevent the ring from sliding up as the buoyant effect of the wave increases. That is to say, the ring thus mounted constitutes a loose endless chain supported by floats and sagging down between the points 6 of support so that when the upward stress on the floats decreases the ring sections will slacken and their arches will droop and slip down over one or more of the irregularities, and as the upward stress again increases the ring catches on such irregularities, and this pre- .Vents the return of the ring to the higher level and so on the action continues until the ring, by a kind of ratchet movement has descended to and has caught the lowermost irregularity. In this manner the ring may descend in time to the ocean bed at the root of the pile and there the wave action continues to operate the floats, pounding them against the pile, thus fracturing the shells and breaking up the accretions thereon. The irregular action of the wave forces causes the floats to revolve the ring around the pile, and to swing and jerk it from side to side, and up and down. During all this time the ring is operating beneath the projections on the pile to loosen and scrape the same from the pile.

In this manner the pile cleaner and protector continues to operate, though submerged; and in some instances it may remain submerged for more than three or four weeks, but gradually works its way toward the surface until the pile is cleaned, after which the pile protector will slip up and down freely responsive to the wave action.

By reason of the rectangular cross section form of floats and the looseness of the stems 5 in the bores S the floats are caused to have rotative action upon their stems as the waves drive the floats toward and from the pile, with the result that all sides of the floats are caused to hammer at one or another time against the pile, thus keeping said floats free from accumulations of sea life.

The sections 1 and 2 practically constitute jaws that slip down over the surface of the foul pile and that can only be raised again as the surface of the pile is cleared of the shells and plants attached thereto. The floats rotatively mounted on the stems are rectangular in cross-section so as to present their successive faces to the pile and as the waves operate the floats they pound with their faces successively on the pile on the eX- crescences for the double purpose of cleansing the pile and keeping it free, and in addition to that, keeping thefloats free from attacks of sea life.

I claim 1. A pile protector comprising a ring formed of a plurality of sections loosely jointed to each other and adapted to loosely encircle the pile; and floats connected to the ring to operate the ring on the pile responsive to the wave action.

2. A pile protector comprising a ring formed of a plurality of bent sections loosely jointed to each other and adapted to loosely encircle the pile; and floats connected to the ring to operate the ring on the pile responsive to the wave action.

3. A pile protector comprising a ring formed of a plurality of bowed sections loosely jointed to each other and adapted to loosely encircle the pile; and floats connected to the ring to operate the ring on the pile responsive to the wave action.

l. A pile protector comprising a ring formed of a plurality of sections loosely jointed to each other and adapted to loosely encircle the pile; and floats connected to the ring at the joints between the sections to operate the ring on the pile responsive to the wave action.

5. A pile protector comprising a ring formed of a plurality of bowed sections loosely jointed to each other and adapted to loosely encircle the pile; and floats connected to the ring at the joints between the sections to operate the ring on the pile responsive to the wave action.

6. A pile protector comprising two bent wire sections loosely jointed to each other and adapted to loosely encircle the pile; and

floats connected to the joints to operate the ring on the pile.

7. A pile protector comprising a ring formed of sections loosely jointed together and adapted to loosely encircle a pile; stems loosely connected to the ring and floats of angular cross-section rotatively mounted on the stems to pound their successive faces against the pile for the double purpose of breaking the excrescences from the pile and keeping the floats free from attacks of sea life.

8. A pile protector comprising an endless chain loosely encircling the pile, and float means to move the endless chain responsive to Wave act-ion.

9. A pile protector comprising an endless chain loosely encircling the pile, and floatmeans connected to the chain at separated Copies of this patent may be obtained for points to move the endless chain responsive to Wave action; said chain being adapted to sag down between its points of support.

10. A pile protector comprising a member formed of a plurality of sections loosely jointed to each other and adapted to loosely encircle and engage the pile; and floats responsive to the Wave action connected to operate the member upon the pile.

11. A pile protector comprising a flexible collar, and a plurality ofbuoyant members loosely connected to the collar each of the members having a plurality of faces.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 2nd day of September, 1915.

ALVA LEMAN REYNOLDS.

In presence of JAMES R. TOWNSEND.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner 0! Patents,

Washington, I). G. 

